Three New Names

We’re excited to tell you that we now have three new names for our Messages of Hope initiative!  Our goal is to write fifty notes of encouragement to each of five children that will be receiving life-saving heart surgeries through the Preemptive Love Coalition.  We began this Worship in Action emphasis with two names, Meer Mustafa, and Kaser Najeb Qasim.  Now that all of their notecards have been taken from the Re:Action Center we are adding three more names to reach our goal of five children:

Honya Mahdi

Ahmet Osman

Danar Sami

We still need people to write notes of encouragement to these three children, so please stop by the Re:Action Center and help us meet this last remaining goal.  You can take a card and write words of love and support, or let your kids draw a picture.  Then return it to the Re:Action Center and place it in the donations box.  Thank you for allowing the love of Christ to be demonstrated through your lives!

Don’t Forget to Return Your Notecards

If you have taken a notecard for our “Messages of Hope” initiative, don’t forget to fill it out and return it.  Each of our fifty notecards for the first two kids has been taken, but only a portion have been returned.  Don’t let it wander to the bottom of your junk drawer!  Fill it out with a word of love and encouragement, bring it back to the Re:Action Center and place it in the box so that we can send it on to the Middle East.

And if you haven’t taken a notecard yet, never fear!  More names are on the way.  As soon as we have more names of children who will be receiving surgery we’ll make sure we have notecards available for them as well.

Thanks for your help and your generosity!

Financial Goals Complete!

We are so excited to let you know that as of last week we have completed our financial goals!  In just three short weeks we have already surpassed the goals we set for three months!  Thank you for your generosity!

Our first goal was to fund a kitchen for each of the couples who will be moving to Turkey.  The kitchen will be a huge part of their work in Turkey as they extend hospitality to their neighbors and will cost approximately $3,500 to fully furnish.  We have funded each of these three kitchens, a total of $10,500!

Our second goal was to fund two life-saving heart surgeries for Iraqi children through the Preemptive Love Coalition at $5,000 apiece.  Not only did we receive enough for two surgeries, but we are going to fund an additional surgery as well: three surgeries for a total of $15,000!

Our third goal remains unfinished: to send 50 notes of love and encouragement to each of five children that will be receiving surgery through PLC in the coming months.  However, as of Sunday morning, each of the cards for our first two children had been taken.  You can fill those cards out and then return them to the Re:Action Center and place them in the donations box.  If you did not receive a card, never fear!  More children will be receiving surgery soon, and as soon as we get their names we will put out notecards to send to them.

We are so grateful to God for your generosity!  We can’t wait to see how he uses these gifts for the Kingdom!

Meer Mustafa Undergoes Surgery

Here’s a quick update on Meer Mustafa, one of the kids in our “Messages of Hope” initiative.  He has undergone surgery, and come through with flying colors.  It turns he was only the 51st reported case of his kind in the entire world!  As PLC’s Jeremy Courtney says, “We are proud of our doctors today!”

Meanwhile, surgery for Kaser Najeb Qasim, our second “Messages of Hope” child, appears imminent.  He still has a couple hurdles to clear, but surgery looks to be on the horizon.  Keep praying for both of these kids, and the other children that PLC serves by providing heart surgeries.

And don’t miss your opportunity to write one of these kids a word of encouragement and hope.  Pick up a notecard at the Re:Action Center outside the Worship Center, fill it out with a “Message of Hope” and then return it to the Re:Action Center and place it in the donations box.  Our goal is to send 50 notes of encouragement to each of these kids!

Worship in Action: Turkey Officially Launches

This weekend we launched our new Worship in Action emphasis, and we are excited to see what God will do in us and through us!  For the next three months we will focus on a new ministry in Turkey.  The Preemptive Love Coalition began in 2007 in order to provide life-saving heart surgeries for Kurdish children, surgeries they could not receive in Iraq.   The work has expanded greatly in the last two years, so PLC has partnered with a hospital in Istanbul, Turkey in order to have another location to send these children for surgery.

In November, our friends Scott and Abby will move to Turkey to begin this ministry.  But the won’t be moving alone.  God has also called two other families to join this work in the coming months.  Together they will form the Tuzla Community, caring for the families that come for surgery, and reaching out to the Muslim community around them.

PLC has negotiated an incredible price for the surgeries that these kids receive.  Only $10,000 will provide some of the most sophisticated surgery in the world for kids that desperately need it.  $5,000 comes from the child’s family and other Iraqi organizations.  Only $5,000 more is needed to provide one of these heart surgeries.  Our first goal is to raise $10,000, enough for two life-saving heart surgeries.

But caring for these children doesn’t end with surgery.  Providing love and encouragement tin a time of crisis, the Tuzla Community will offer these families a hope transfusion.  We want you to be involved in loving these children as well.  We have provided notecards addressed to five of these children who will be receiving surgery in the coming months.  You can write a note of love and encouragement, or let your kids draw a picture of your family or home.  Our second goal is to deliver fifty of these notecards to each of these five children.

But Kurdish children aren’t the only ones who need heart surgery.  We all do.  Kurds, Arabs, Turks, Americans – we are all in need of God’s love to transform our hearts.  In Muslim culture, as in Jesus’ day, hospitality is a crucial component of friendship.  When these families meet with their Muslim neighbors in their homes, they will have a chance to share of the eternal Bread of Life.

Each of these families must raise over $30,000 just to cover the costs of relocating to Turkey.  We want to share that burden by providing for their kitchens, the place they will form lasting relationships within the community around them.  $3,500 will cover the cost of everything these families need: appliances, pots, pans, dishes, silverware, and the all-important tea kettle and glasses.  Our third goal is to raise $3,500 to setup the kitchens of each of the three families that will be moving to Turkey, a total of $10,500.

So how can you be a part?  Just bring your donation to the Re:Action Center or write “Worship in Action” on your offering envelope.  We can’t wait to see what God can do through us.  This is Worship in Action!

New Worship in Action Emphasis Coming Soon!

It’s almost here!  Our new Worship in Action emphasis launches on August 29-30 during our worship services.  We can’t wait to share with you where God is leading us next!  Don’t miss it!

A Few Words from our Prayer Teams

The Israel Mission Trip was not only a wonderful experience for the participants, but also for those who stayed behind and prayed faithfully for the trip.  Staci Roth and Debbie Boedeker were both part of our 24-Hour Prayer Team, and their comments reflect the sentiments of many of these prayer partners:

Staci Roth:

God blessed me with the most amazing prayer time.  I felt as though He had given me a front row seat to the journey!  Tiff [Cobb] and I texted every other morning, and what God had placed on my heart at midnight to pray was exactly what was taking place that day!  Hallelujah!

Debbie Boedeker:

It was one of the most profound spiritual experiences of my life.  I have kept my alarm on my cell [phone] set for 10 AM and am continuing the practice of stopping whatever and wherever I am and praying.  I have been on mission trips before and have prayed for mission trips before, but never like this.  The guide Heather [Bell] wrote was incredible; it meant so much to pray so specifically for events, places, activities, and people.

What was your experience like?  Did God work in your life?  Did God reveal something new to you?  We welcome your comments or e-mails.  On personal note, it was a significant spiritual experience for me as well.  I loved being able to pray for specific people and events, knowing that often they were occurring as I was praying.  I enjoyed the personal connection, and it made my prayers more genuine and meaningful.  I echo Debbie’s gratitude to Heather Bell for an incredible prayer guide, and look forward to the opportunity to do something like this again in the future.

They’re Back!

The Israel Mission Team has returned from their two-week long trip to the Holy Land.  Make sure that you check out the blog at www.tallohoodtoday.com to read stories and see pictures from their trip.  And please join us on Sunday evening, August 2, for a time of reflection and celebration of everything God has done through the lives of our students and adults in Israel.

Now we want to know about your experiences praying for the team.  How did God speak to you during your prayer times?  How did it impact you?  You can tell us by leaving a comment on this post or e-mailing me at dray@tallowood.org.  We’ll put up some of your responses in a future blog post.  Thank you for standing with us in prayer!

Updates on the Israel Mission Trip

Want to receive updates on what is going on with the Israel Mission Team?  Check out www.tallohoodtoday.com, the Youth Ministry blog.  The blog will be updated throughout the trip with posts from the five mission teams.  Currently it has a picture of each of the five teams, which could be helpful if you want to put names with faces as you pray.  Check it out!

A Fitting Send-Off

Last night was a great time of prayer as we commissioned the Israel Mission Team.  They will leave on Tuesday, July 14, knowing that the Tallowood community has come together to support them in prayer.  Thank you for your continued prayer on behalf of the team and the many people they will encounter in Israel.

A total of 241 people have committed to prayer for one of our five mission teams, and between friends and family who do not attend church at Tallowood, I have no doubt that the actual number of people praying will be significantly larger.  And we successfully filled every single slot on our 24-Hour Prayer Team, a total of 315 hours! And of course, you don’t have to sign up to pray.  Even though the deadline for signing up has past, we welcome anyone to join us as we pray for the Israel Mission Team over the next two weeks.

Now we wait in eager anticipation to see what God will do!